Aesch ATM Attack; BVB Pilots New Disinfection System; Beetle Named For Basel Discoverer

News For 30 March 2021

Last Friday at 3:30 in the morning, police were notified that an explosion took place and an Automated Banking Machine had been attacked in Aesch in the canton of Basel Land.  Apparently, the detonation that was set off by the perpetrators was so intense that people in neighboring villages were woken by what they assumed was thunder.  The machine, operated by the Swiss bank UBS was destroyed, and considerable damage was done to the surrounding building.  No word yet from the authorities on the amount of money which was removed from the machine.

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Several BVB buses around Basel have begun using Hydrogen Peroxide in its circulating air filtration system, which is meant to kill viruses, bacteria, and fungi in the buses, thus disinfecting them. The BVB is the first transit system in Switzerland to use a mobile disinfectant method in the hopes of creating a safer indoor environment for the public. The pilot program started yesterday and if it goes well is expected to ramp up. It is important to note that hydrogen peroxide is completely harmless to humans. The BLT tram system isn't left out, they are also using advanced filtration systems to keep their passengers safe.

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Insect researcher Christoph Germann from the Natural History Museum in Basel has discovered a new species of beetle in the jungles of Borneo. As customary, having the rights to name his new discovery meant the opportunity to name the beetle after the Basel born entomologist and environmental activist Bruno Manser. Mr. Manser is famous for having fought the timber and logging companies in the jungles of southeast Asia.  Although his body was never found after his final expedition to the island of Sarawak in Indonesia, Basel Stadt declared Mr. Manser dead in 2005.  The weevil was discovered as part of a research project and is now called “Seticotasteromimus brunomanseri”.